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The 86th Security Forces Squadron, 435th Security Forces Squadron and 568th U.S. Forces Police Squadron implemented a new Expeditionary Active Shooter Training class Oct. 1 on Ramstein.
The training is a requirement for all deploying Airmen from the 86th Airlift Wing, 435th Air Ground Operations Wing and 521st Air Mobility Operations Wing to teach them the skills and tactics required to safely navigate an active shooter situation.
The class consists of a PowerPoint presentation covering the basics of how to respond in such a situation followed by a hands-on practical portion. Currently, the course is held once a week with the capacity for 30 students, but there is a possibility of it growing to two to three classes per week.
One of the purposes of the course is to make Airmen aware of the fact that active shooter situations do not only occur at a home base or in the U.S. but that there’s the potential for one in a deployed location, and it teaches how to handle such a situation.
“In the past there have been a lot of active shooter situations worldwide,” said Staff Sgt. Karriem Abdul’Ahad, 86th SFS training section instructor. “It doesn’t matter if it’s while deployed, in the states or wherever, individuals have not known how to respond to these situations. Our job here is to teach Airmen how to get out of these situations with their life, if possible.”
An important aspect of the class is that it includes hands-on training that allows the students to utilize the skills they have been taught in a simulated, active shooter situation.
“As an instructor, I understand that some individuals don’t learn through only PowerPoint,” Abdul’Ahad said. “The practical portion gives a different insight to the whole thing. You’re actually doing the actions to what you’ve learned, so it definitely enhances the intelligence of getting out of a situation like that.”
The hands-on training also allows Airmen to receive tips and guidance on specific actions they took during the simulation.
“I really liked this class,” said Airman 1st Class Sam Della Torre, a student in the course and 435th AGOW knowledge operations technician. “What I took the most from the practical portion was the comment I received about not standing behind a barricaded door because you could get shot. I actually was holding the table to barricade the door, and it was a good lesson to learn.”
Because the course is a requirement, if an Airman is unable to attend the scheduled class due to mission priorities, a one-on-one class is available for them to meet the required training.
The 86th SFS, 435th SFS and 569th USFPS, through the EAST class, are helping to keep Airmen resilient and provide them the tools they need to properly react in order to survive an active shooter situation.
